Is your personal data at risk? Why telecom companies aren’t telling you about the massive hacking scam
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In an era where our smartphones feel like extensions of ourselves, the security of our phone data is as personal as it gets. Yet, a disconcerting silence hangs in the air for millions of Americans who remain unaware that their call records may have been compromised in a sweeping cyber espionage campaign.
Dubbed “Salt Typhoon”, this operation has left a trail of digital intrusion that's both alarming and seemingly unending. The GrayVine is here to shed light on this critical issue, especially for our community members who may not be as tech-savvy but deserve to be informed and protected.
Sources within the telecom industry have revealed a disturbing fact: the vast majority of individuals whose call records were siphoned off by Chinese hackers have not been notified.
This breach isn't just a minor glitch; it's a significant violation of privacy that has affected an estimated million-plus people, primarily around Washington, D.C.
The hackers didn't stop at listening to phone calls or reading texts. They delved into metadata—details like call times, phone numbers, and cell tower locations.
While this might sound less sensitive than the content of communications, metadata can reveal patterns of behavior, social networks, and even physical movements.
Despite the gravity of the situation, the FBI, along with telecom giants AT&T and Verizon, has only informed a select group of high-profile victims, including political figures and their campaigns. The presidential campaigns of Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, alongside the office of Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer were reportedly targeted.
However, the hackers also accessed different but still sensitive information from more people, with many residing in the Washington DC area. This information includes phone calls and texts, which are known as metadata.
Although the records do not link phone numbers with its users, intelligence services may already be aware of the targets’ numbers and use phone metadata to identify their travels and contacts.
The executive director and president of Electronic Privacy Information Center, Alan Butler, remarked, “You should be upset, because carriers’ deficient practices resulting in the exposure of whether you called an oncologist or your church is enough of a violation, regardless of whether the actual content of those calls was also disclosed.”
This hacking campaign affected more than a million people, but it is believed that the FBI has no plans to inform other victims, according to an agency official and two industry sources from AT&T and Verizon.
AT&T and Verizon have made vague statements about complying with obligations to notify affected parties. In a statement made over email, an AT&T representative said that the company will “continue to comply with our obligations to notify affected parties.”
A person that’s familiar with Verizon’s plans also reported that the company made a similar statement and action plan to AT&T’s, informing only a small number of customers who were affected by the incident.
Both companies refused to specify plans for alerting people whose metadata was accessed. The Federal Communications Commission, the body responsible for overseeing these companies' obligations to their customers, has remained tight-lipped on the matter.
The Chinese Embassy spokesperson in Washington has also denied responsibility.
The Salt Typhoon campaign is not a simple hacking incident. It’s one of the biggest intelligence compromises in the history of the country. It hacked into eight local telecom and internet service providers and dozens of others across the globe.
Meanwhile, Dakota Cary, a China adviser for Sentinel One, said that Chinese intelligence would find call records, times and phone locations for the Washington area useful to them.
She said, “Mapping the social relationships between groups of politicos would be pretty useful.”
In earlier news, The GrayVine also covered some details of the hack that happened. You can read more about it in this story here.
Have you taken steps to protect your phone data? Do you have concerns about how telecom companies handle your information? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below!
Dubbed “Salt Typhoon”, this operation has left a trail of digital intrusion that's both alarming and seemingly unending. The GrayVine is here to shed light on this critical issue, especially for our community members who may not be as tech-savvy but deserve to be informed and protected.
Sources within the telecom industry have revealed a disturbing fact: the vast majority of individuals whose call records were siphoned off by Chinese hackers have not been notified.
This breach isn't just a minor glitch; it's a significant violation of privacy that has affected an estimated million-plus people, primarily around Washington, D.C.
The hackers didn't stop at listening to phone calls or reading texts. They delved into metadata—details like call times, phone numbers, and cell tower locations.
While this might sound less sensitive than the content of communications, metadata can reveal patterns of behavior, social networks, and even physical movements.
The majority of victims whose call records were compromised by Chinese hackers have not been notified, with little indication that they will be informed anytime soon. Image source: Markus Spiske / Unsplash.
Despite the gravity of the situation, the FBI, along with telecom giants AT&T and Verizon, has only informed a select group of high-profile victims, including political figures and their campaigns. The presidential campaigns of Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, alongside the office of Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer were reportedly targeted.
However, the hackers also accessed different but still sensitive information from more people, with many residing in the Washington DC area. This information includes phone calls and texts, which are known as metadata.
Although the records do not link phone numbers with its users, intelligence services may already be aware of the targets’ numbers and use phone metadata to identify their travels and contacts.
The executive director and president of Electronic Privacy Information Center, Alan Butler, remarked, “You should be upset, because carriers’ deficient practices resulting in the exposure of whether you called an oncologist or your church is enough of a violation, regardless of whether the actual content of those calls was also disclosed.”
This hacking campaign affected more than a million people, but it is believed that the FBI has no plans to inform other victims, according to an agency official and two industry sources from AT&T and Verizon.
AT&T and Verizon have made vague statements about complying with obligations to notify affected parties. In a statement made over email, an AT&T representative said that the company will “continue to comply with our obligations to notify affected parties.”
A person that’s familiar with Verizon’s plans also reported that the company made a similar statement and action plan to AT&T’s, informing only a small number of customers who were affected by the incident.
Both companies refused to specify plans for alerting people whose metadata was accessed. The Federal Communications Commission, the body responsible for overseeing these companies' obligations to their customers, has remained tight-lipped on the matter.
The Chinese Embassy spokesperson in Washington has also denied responsibility.
The Salt Typhoon campaign is not a simple hacking incident. It’s one of the biggest intelligence compromises in the history of the country. It hacked into eight local telecom and internet service providers and dozens of others across the globe.
Meanwhile, Dakota Cary, a China adviser for Sentinel One, said that Chinese intelligence would find call records, times and phone locations for the Washington area useful to them.
She said, “Mapping the social relationships between groups of politicos would be pretty useful.”
In earlier news, The GrayVine also covered some details of the hack that happened. You can read more about it in this story here.
Have you taken steps to protect your phone data? Do you have concerns about how telecom companies handle your information? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below!
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